User:Pmailkeey still/Alternative highway classification

I am rather bothered that current classifications of road type in the UK on OSM are misleading in that they appear to over-rate a road by making it appear comparably good with other known roads a user may know.

OSM is currently following a trend of labelling roads by purpose rather than fitness for purpose and is thus indicating any UK 'A' road as being a 'good' road irrespective of whether it's a good road or a really awful one.

Take 3 OSM A roads: A593, A5084, A508. These are all denoted as 'Primary Routes' on OSM so someone who knows the A508 well and plans to journey along the A593... ...well, they're going to be in for one heck of a big shock when they go there. Also, who would have thought the A5084 was better than the A593 ? It is - but OSM doesn't show that - with the current classifications.

My measure is something like: "The ability of the road to enable the user to maintain the national speed limit safely; on an otherwise empty road in the user's direction (of travel)." Factors affecting this include:

Width: wide, narrow, single track

gradient

curves

local speed limits

traffic lights

junctions

Problems with current method

Classification names are meaningless.

Name 'Trunk' is easily confused with 'Trunk roads' which is already defined in the UK yet OSM is not using trunk the same way. DfT trunk roads do not need to be mentioned in any case.

Lack of 'dual carriageway' - current map implementation is not clear whether a dual carriageway or two roads going in opposite directions.